Two Kinds of Joy, Solitude, and Self-Improvement
Monday Muse (Vol. 118)
🖼️ Monday Muse
The “Monday Muse” is a collection of reminders, insights, and maxims on the art of living. The term “muse” has two meanings: (1) a state of deep thought; and (2) a source of inspiration. May the following (in a small way) serve as a source of contemplation and wisdom for daily life.
📌 Perennial Reminder(s)
William James, a nineteenth-century philosopher and psychologist, spent years studying the full range of human experience—religious crisis, mystical encounter, and the ordinary texture of daily life. What he found, again and again, was that the pursuit of happiness was not a shallow concern but the deepest one, the one that motivated everything else.
But happiness, James observed, comes in two very different forms.
There is the happiness that depends on circumstances—on getting what you want, on the day cooperating, on fortune being kind. It is real, while it lasts. And it does not last.
And then there is something else. Something that does not rise and fall with the weather of events. Something James could describe but struggled to name—until he reached for a phrase that stopped him in his tracks.
Here’s how Seneca put it:
“Above all, my dear Lucilius, make this your business: learn how to feel joy.”
Learn how to feel joy. Not find joy. Not pursue joy.
Not wait for joy to arrive when circumstances improve or when the hard work is done. Learn how to feel it—as a skill, as a practice, and as something that requires instruction, effort, and time. […]
Read more: There Are Two Kinds of Joy—Most People Are Chasing the Wrong One
📜 Perennial Maxim(s)
Learn more: What Are You Running From?
💡 Perennial Insight(s)
Have you observed a change in the language?
Not about actions themselves, but how people now describe them.
Nobody simply reads anymore; they “invest in their development.” Instead of just cooking, they “optimize their nutrition.” Rather than going for a walk, they “get their steps in.”
At some point, without fully realizing it, we transformed everyday experiences into a set of performance metrics. The most surprising aspect isn’t the language used but how seamlessly it has integrated into daily life. The original activities—the meal, the walk, and the book—now feel almost awkward to discuss without linking them to some form of productivity.
As though living well and improving constantly had become the same project.
They haven’t. And the confusion between them, I’ve come to think, is one of the more elegant traps of modern life—elegant because it is so difficult to object to.
Who argues against growth?
Who defends stagnation?
The trap works precisely because its premise is unimpeachable. Of course, you should be better tomorrow than you are today. Of course, the gap between who you are and who you could be deserves your attention.
What the premise quietly assumes is that the gap is the most important thing about you. […]
Read more: The Tyranny of Self-Improvement
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Thank you for reading; I hope you found something useful.
Until next time, be wise and be well.
J.W. Bertolotti
P.S. Catch up on recent (and past) meditations in the archive!